ARC, 256 pages
Release Date: May 30, 2023
Published by: Quill Tree Books
Read from: May 12-28, 2023
Stand-alone
Source: Publisher @ TLA (I received an ARC of this book from the publisher in exchange for a just and honest review. This did nothing to influence my review.)
TW: Bullying, Racism
For Readers Interested In: Romance, Realistic Fiction, YA, Music, Black Male POV, Cindererlla retellings, PodcastsCinderella meets Cyrano in this pitch-perfect YA rom-com that is a celebration of Black joy, first crushes, and putting your heart on the line for love.
Darren Johnson lives in his head. There, he can pine for his crush—total dream girl, Delia Dawson—in peace, away from the unsolicited opinions of his talkative family and showboat friends. When Delia announces a theme song contest for her popular podcast, Dillie D in the Place to Be, Darren’s friends—convinced he’ll never make a move—submit one of his secret side projects for consideration.
After the anonymous romantic verse catches Dillie’s ear, she sets out to uncover the mystery singer behind the track. Now Darren must decide: Is he ready to step out of the shadows and take the lead in his own life?
*MY THOUGHTS*
I knew this was going to be a favorite of mine when I saw the cover. And then it said that it was also a Cinderella retelling? Listen I was so right! The slow burn was a little much, but it was still good and I’d definitely read it again.
Ok so let’s talk about the characters. I LOVED Dillie. She was the one who kept me interested. She was so lively and she had the podcast and everything. She seemed a lot like me. I also liked Darren, but he reminded me of me too. His anxiety (that’s what I was thinking was wrong with him and why he was in his own head all the time because that’s exactly what I would do) reminded me of me too…. Which is why we clashed a little lol I hate when people tell me stuff about my anxiety and desire to always be perfect, but I have no problem pointing it out. So here were are. I hated that he was so set on being perfect for everyone that he let his life pass by. I knew he would have eventually gotten there, but I think he would have let someone take the credit and never said anything. He was a pushover lol But his parents tho? So freaking cute! They reminded me of my own parents. They’re also lovey dovey like that and they also love music and all the things. I thought it was super cute!
The plot was good, but it was so slow. It was definitely a slow burn that I had to shift through. And as we know I’m not a fan of slow burns. But this one was ok though. I guess because I knew it was a Cinderella retelling, I knew it wouldn’t happen until the end. But it was still hell waiting on it. It got a little repetitive in the middle with him writing the song and then not showing anyone and then not telling Dillie but contemplating telling her. It was weird lol But even still I was ok with it because I love to see people fall in love. Especially Black people.
The romance was cute, but again, since this was a slow burn it was a hardly there. They had some cute flirting that was happening and it was fun to see the two of them squirm, but I think it would have been better if we could have seen them together? Maybe it was just a me thing? But if they spend most of the romance book trying to get together, I count it more as a coming of age novel. Because there’s no romance lol
The music aspect of this was great tho. I loved seeing Darren come back to his love. I know what it’s like to come back to something after you’ve left it behind for some reason. And seeing him flourish once he did get back to it was amazing. I loved it and I was glad he got to experience it again. I also really liked his parents and their love for some of the same R&B that I love as well. It even taught me some things. Like the Zapp and Roger song, Computer Love? I can never listen to that song the same again. I never even thought of the fact that they were talking about Facetime before Facetime was even thought of lol That is a random fact I’ll never forget.
This was cute, but I wanted a little more. Even if it was just a couple chapters after the prom I would have liked it more. I wanted to see the two of them together. It was a romance book after all. Even still it was super good and super intriguing because of the way the Cinderella thing was done. I love fairy tales, but even moreso when they’re Black!
Overall, I give this
